Workers and some concern citizens of the Oti Region are calling on the Office of the Special Prosecutor to investigate some allegations being leveled against the Oti Regional Director of the Ghana Education Service (GES) Nana Kugbeadzor-Bakateyi II.
A letter dated 6-11-2023 and addressed to the Director General of the Ghana Education Service revealed that, the presence of the said Director is gradually collapsing the education sector in the entire Oti region.
Aside the allegations of corruption, abuse of office and intimidation, the letter also stated how a section of workers of the GES in the Oti region, the youth and Old students of Krachi Senior High School have all issued an ultimatum, asking the GES Director to park out of office within two weeks from a stated date.
Another letter endorsed by Prophet Anthony Kwarteng, a native of Oti and addressed to the Office of the Special Prosecutor said that, recent audit report points to huge embezzlement of public funds through dubious means by the said Director.
It further revealed how over 200 students have contracted various diseases in the region as a result of the malnutritious meals and poor accommodation challenges, while Nana Kugbeadzor Bakateyi II has allegedly failed to find solutions to them.
Prophet Anthony Kwarteng revealed in his letter that, in 2020, under the “GALOP” project, the Ghana government through the GES released substantial funds to Oti Regional GES for the execution of that project, but the Regional Director allegedly applied some dubious means to transfer the funds into the accounts of Nchumuruman Senior High School in the region after which the money was taken in trenches to enrich herself.
According to the letter, it was alleged that, another substantial amount of GH 34,000.00 have been embezzled by Nana Kugbeadzor – Bakateyi II in 2002 and this was revealed by an audit report.
We can reveal that, many workers of GES in Oti are spiritedly down while at duty and this does not guarantee any good working environment for progress to be recorded.
Meanwhile, staffs of the GES have indicated that, some tutors and school heads of the region are set to expose the corrupt practices of the regional Director amidst abuse of office.
This follows some confusion which is currently on going at the Krachi Senior High School where the school’s matron’s October 2023 salary has been frozen reportedly by the Oti Regional Director of Ghana Education Service Nana Kegbeadzor Bakateyi and some of her senior officers.
The above situation has sparked anger within the rank and file of matrons in the region who have since declared their support for Miss Favour Howusu the Matron, while condemning the Oti GES boss for taking the laws into her own hands.
Additional files from the Oti region points to the fact that, Oti youth and some other groups are planning to embark upon a demonstration to register their displeasure against the continuous stay in office of the regional GES boss.
By Graham Baldwin